Black Bean Sweet Potato Quesadilla

I love, love roasted sweet potatoes, they are so yummy. I could totally just eat them all off of the pan! Here is different and yummy way to make a quesadilla. I adapted my Fire Roasted Green Chili Enchilada recipe to make it quicker and more kid friendly.

1 large sweet potato peeled and cubed
1 can black beans drained and rinsed
1-2 large cloves of garlic minced, or pressed
1 small can fire roasted green chili's
1 lime
1/2 tsp or less, or curry or chili powder
1/2 tsp or less cumin
1 Tbs. olive or coconut oil.
whole wheat tortillas
cheese

Preheat your oven to 400. Mix your cubed sweet potatoes with the oil, chili powder, and cumin. Also season with a little salt and pepper. Spread out on a cookie sheet and cook for about 20 min, stirring or shaking the pan at the 10 min mark. When done, set aside to cool.

In a bowl, combine black beans, garlic, green chili's, and juice from half of the lime. Mix well. When sweet potatoes have cooled a bit, add them to mixture and stir to combine. Use this as your quesadilla filling. I like to spread the mixture on half, sprinkle cheese on top, then fold the other half over.

Curry with Black Eye Peas, and Potatoes

I know, I do TONS of curry recipes! But they are always vegan, and Jared loves them so we try a lot in this house! This one was a little different than the others since I used red potatoes, and spinach! This recipe is from theppk.com

1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon fresh minced ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons mild curry powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 cups vegetable broth
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 red potatoes, cut in 3/4 inch pieces

2 cups spinach, chopped. Or your can use kale, or collard greens

1 can coconut milk

1 1/2 cups cooked black eyed peas (from a 15 oz can, rinsed and drained)

Preheat a 4 quart pot over medium heat. Saute the onion in the coconut oil for 5 to 7 minutes, until onion is lightly browned.

Add the garlic and ginger, and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons of curry powder, garam masala, salt, vegetable broth, agave, and tomato paste, and stir. The tomato paste may not dissolve just yet but that’s ok, it will when it heats through.

Add the potatoes, cover pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, immediately lower heat to a simmer, and leave the lid ajar so that steam can escape. Let potatoes cook just until tender, about 5 more minutes.

In the meantime, toss together all of the salsa ingredients in a mixing bowl and set aside.

Once potatoes are fork tender, add the spinach, black-eyed peas and coconut milk. Stir gently to incorporate. Leave lid ajar again, and bring to a simmer. Let simmer, it should only take a few minutes.

Serve with with jasmine, or brown rice.

Quinoa Black Bean and Corn Taco's

This is another recipe I found on Pinterest. We bought a huge bag of quinoa at Costco for $10 so I have been trying to find different ways to use it. I threw it in our chili, we had it in wraps, and then I tried this recipe. I think the filling would also be good on a tostada! Enjoy! Recipe and picture from cookingclassy.com

• 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 cup vegetable broth or chicken broth
• 1 (14.5) oz can diced tomatoes with green chilis, undrained
• 1 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground coriander
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn
• 2 (15 oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
• juice of 1 lime
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

• Heat olive oil in a large non-stick saucepan over medium high heat. Once hot, add onion and saute until golden and tender, about 3 minutes. Add in garlic and saute 30 seconds longer. Stir in broth, diced tomatoes, cooked quinoa, chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayenne, coriander and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat, cover saucepan with lid and simmer about 20 minutes, until mixture has thickened.
• Stir in corn and black beans and simmer, uncovered 5 - 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Mix in lime juice and cilantro. Serve warm over tortillas with desired toppings.

Spicy Bean and Rice Burritos

1 box spanish rice cooked per intructions
1 can black beans rinsed and drained
1 can pinto beans drained
1-2 Tbs. Adobo sauce (depending on how spicy you want them)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1/2 Tbs. oil
1/2 cup water
whole wheat tortillas
shredded cheese, and anything else you like on your burritos!

I start my rice before I do anything else because it takes about 30 min. to cook. I have also found that I don't quite use all the rice it makes. I probably use 3/4's of it. Saute your garlic in the oil for about a minute on medium heat, then add your beans, spices, adobo sauce, and water. Mix well. Let simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once your rice is done, add it to your bean mixture and mix well. Top with cheese, and any other topping you want, then put in a tortilla!

Sweet Potato Cauliflower Curry

Recipe and Picture from Noreencooks.com

Another Curry recipe! One of the reasons I try so many curry recipes is because so many of them are vegan! I have tried even more than I have put on this blog. Only my favorites make the cut. You can serve this with naan, brown rice, or jasmine rice.

1 onion diced
1 head of cauliflower cut into small florets
1 large sweet potato peeled and cubed
1 can chick peas rinsed and drained
1 can coconut milk
1 cup vegetable broth
1 tsp. Garam Masala
1/2 to 1 Tbs. curry powder (I probably used about a little more than a half)
salt to taste

I cooked this is a large pan on the stove, but I also think you could do this in your crockpot on high for 3-4 hours. I would just cook the onion first.

Heat 1-2 Tbs. olive oil in a large sauce pan, or pot and saute onions until they become soft. Add curry, and garam masala and stir well for 1 minute. Add coconut milk, broth, sweet potato, and cauliflower. Bring to a boil, cover, then let simmer until vegetables become soft. I think ours took about 30 min on medium low heat. When your veggies are soft, add the chick peas and heat though. Season with salt and serve!

Black Bean and Corn Relish Tostadas

This recipe was really easy. It is so yummy and light and perfect for summer. It makes me sad that summer is now over. I'm sure it will still be yummy in the winter, I just won't get to use all yummy produce that has been in season.

Recipe adapted from: Martha Stewart

5-6 whole wheat tortillas
1 Tbs. olive oil
10 oz. pkg. frozen corn-thawed
2 limes
salt and pepper
1 large ripe avocado
3 green onions sliced thinly
1 can black beans rinsed and drained
shredded cheese
diced tomatoes
sour cream

A few hours before dinner, thaw your corn.  Add the juice from your 2 limes, the Tbs. of olive oil, green onions, and season with salt and pepper. Stir well. Cover and refrigerate until you are ready to use. When you are ready to make dinner, cube your avocado and add to corn mix. Also, have your tomatoes diced and ready at this time.

Heat your oven to 450. Spray each tortilla with Pam, or olive oil on both sides and put on a cookie sheet. Top lightly with shredded cheese and a spoonful of black beans. Cook for 6-8 minutes rotating the pan halfway through. Keep an eye on them, you want them crispy and starting to brown, but they can burn easily.

Remove from oven and top with corn mixture, diced tomatoes, and sour cream if desired. My husband likes jalapino's on his so you can always add that too!

Crispy Tofu

I am not the biggest fan of tofu, but every once in a while I find a way to cook it that is good and not all wet and mushy. I found this recipe through Pinterest and my whole family loved it!

Recipe from www.vegandad.blogspot.com

1 block firm tofu, drained and cut into 10-11 equal slices.
Olive oil for frying

Mix together well:
3/4 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. poultry seasoning
1 tsp. paprika
a pinch of black pepper

In a separate bowl whisk:
1 cup almond milk
2 Tbs. mustard
2 Tbs. hot sauce
1/2 tsp. salt

In another bowl:
1 cup panko bread crumbs

After you cut tofu into slices, line a cookie sheet with a towel, put tofu on it, cover with another towel, and another cookie sheet. Place a few cans of food, or something heavy on top of cookie sheet to help drain the tofu. Leave for 15 minutes.

After you have drained tofu, get some oil heating on medium heat in a large frying pan. Next, you will dip your tofu slices in the milk, then dredge in the flour mixture, back in the milk, then cover with the panko crumbs. Cook 4-5 slices at a time turning every 3-4 minutes until they are golden.